AMTA Snapshot Edition 103

AMTA responds to Canberra Times’ mobile phone claims The Australian Mobile Telecommunications Association relies on the expert judgment of public health authorities, such as the World Health Organization, for assessments of safety and health impacts, AMTA Chief Executive, Chris Althaus, said today. He was responding to a front-page story in the Canberra Times, reporting claims by a Canberra neurosurgeon that there was evidence that mobile phone use was potentially more dangerous than “asbestos and smoking”.

Cyber safety and mobile technology highlighted at AMTA Members Forum next month Cyber safety developments highlighting issues raised by mobile technology will be a key issue for the AMTA Members Forum in Sydney on April 10.

Final report on work/life balance study released The first study in Australia to use nationally representative data on how mobile phones have become integrated into everyday lives has released its final report. The study, The Impact of the Mobile Phone on Work/Life Balance, is a collaboration between AMTA and the Australian Research Council.

Policy and Strategy Steering Committee (PSSC) Planning Day The PSSC held a planning day on 5 March to review its work plan for 2008/09 in the context of AMTA’s Strategic Plan and emerging issues for the industry.

Minister to address RadComms 08 Conference The Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy, Senator Stephen Conroy, will deliver a keynote address at the Australian Communications and Media Authority’s conference on the management of the radiofrequency spectrum, RadComms 08, to be held in Melbourne from Wednesday 30 April to Friday 2 May.

ACMA and TIO signal closer cooperation on complaints, compliance and enforcement The Australian Communications and Media Authority and the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to further promote cooperation between the two agencies.

NSW Minister urges citizens to use mobile phones to record crimes NSW Police Minister, David Campbell, has revealed details of a new project encouraging citizens to capture video and photographic evidence of crimes on their phones and upload it securely over the Web to law enforcement agencies.

SMS and email set to take off on Qantas domestic flights later this year Qantas will allow in-flight SMS and e-mail on select domestic flights by the end of the year after a successful trial of technology developed by aviation tech start-up AeroMobile, Australian IT reports.

WA model considered for national warning system An early warning alert system developed by the Fire and Emergency Services Authority will be considered for introduction nationally, Emergency Services Minister John Kobelke said today.

India Will Overtake the USA in Mobile Phone Subscribers During April India's Telecoms Regulatory Authority (TRAI) has reported that a total of 8.49 million telephone connections have been added during February 2008 as compared to 8.74 million connections added in January 2008. The total number of telephone connections reaches 290.11 million at the end of February 2008 as compared to 281.62 million in January 2008. The overall tele-density is 25.31% at the end of February 2008 as against 24.63% in January 2008.